The only thing more varied than how people are killed is the many, many ways people try to get away with this terrible crime. Now masterful mystery writer Dorothy Salisbury Davis brings together 23 classic stories of crime and suspense, whodunits and detective stories from some of the finest authors of the 1950s.

Ross Macdonald’s classic P.I. Lew Archer takes a chilling case in California, where the mob isn’t the only deadly thing under the West Coast sun. Margaret Millar brings us the tale of the couple next door who ensnares their neighbor in a tangled web of love and deception. Margaret Manners invites us to a bar for a drink and a quick little story of a con man who got what he deserved—and how the man accused of his murder walked free. And Michael Gilbert brilliant detective Gladwyn Hughes must get to the bottom of an ambassador assassinated in front of forty-five witnesses before a war breaks out in Europe over the murder. Twenty-three stories of criminals, victims, and always, always multiple choices of murder…

Foreword by John Helfers

Introduction by Dorothy Salisbury Davis

“The Blessington Method” by Stanley Ellin

“11 O’Clock Bulletin” by Robert Turner

“The Shill” by Stephen Marlowe

“Mr. Wickwire’s ‘Gun Moll’” by Mignon G. Eberhart

“Guilt-edged Blonde” by Ross MacDonald

“Murder for Fine Art” by John Basye Price

“The Inner Circle” by Ellery Queen

“Cover Her Face” by Ruthven Todd

“The Couple Next Door” by Margaret Millar

“Mr. Nobody” by Wenzell Brown

“The Glass Bridge” by Robert Arthur

“Blood Will Tell” by Anthony Gilbert

“A Matter of Scholarship” by Anthony Boucher

“Nonie” by Helen Kasson

“A Decidedly Innocent Man” by Margaret Manners

“Future Imperfect” by Stuart Palmer

“The Girl with the Burgundy Lips” by Lawrence G. Blochman

“The Man Who Wasn’t Scared” by Andrew Garve

“Theresa” by Marc Seymour

“Justice Magnifique” by Lawrence Treat

“The Stranger on Horseback” by James A. Kirch

“The Night the Stairs Creaked” by Ryerson Johnson

“Snap Shot” by Michael Gilbert

MWA’s Mission

MWA is the premier organization for mystery and crime writers, professionals allied to the crime-writing field, aspiring crime writers, and folks who just love to read crime fiction.